Grandal's records

• First player in major league history to hit homers from both sides of the plate for first two career hits in the same game.

• Sixth player since 1974 with a multi-homer game in his first major league start (last was Toronto catcher J.P. Arenchia on Aug. 7, 2010; only other Padre was Keith Lockhart on April 8, 1994).

• Fourth player in Padres history to homer from both sides of the plate in the same game (Ken Caminiti did it eight times, Milton Bradley and Geoff Blum both did it once).

• Ninth player in Padres history to homer for first major league hit (last was catcher Luis Martinez last July 27; others were P Tim Lollar, CF Kevin McReynolds, P Dave Eiland, 1B Dave Staton, SS Kevin Nicholson, OF Jason Bay, OF Drew Macias).

• First Padres catcher with two homers in a game since Henry Blanco on April 11, 2009.

Source: Elias Sports Bureau

Bill Center

DENVER  Fresh on arrival from Tucson, a wide-eyed Yasmani Grandal stepped into the lavish visitors clubhouse at Coors Field, walking right past the posted sheet with the Padres’ lineup for Saturday. It would make quite the souvenir, the first major league card that included his name among the starting nine.

“My first Triple-A game, I got to catch Volquez,” said Grandal, an effervescent 23-year-old. “My first big league (start), I get to catch Volquez.”

Lucky fellow, Edinson Volquez.

Called up to replace the long-struggling Nick Hundley at catcher, Grandal had a home run in his second and third at bats against the Colorado Rockies, the first one hitting right-handed and the latter batting lefty. The home runs delivered leads of 1-0 and 2-1 to Volquez, who showed some veteran resilience before the power-packed Padres exploded for an 8-4 win.

"Young man gets on an airplane and comes up here on an early flight, gets off the plane and has a game like that?" said manager Bud Black. "Remarkable."

Grandal wasn't the only source of the elixir of youth, either. Two games after making his first career homer a game-winning grand slam in Houston, Alexi Amarista also banged homers in consecutive innings - solo and three-run shots.

Asked how he's enjoying his first visit to Coors Field, Amarista just smiled. Broadly.

Grandal's performance, though, was historic. No major league player has ever had his first two hits be homers from opposite sides of the plate.

"I can't even describe it," said Grandal, soaked with beer and shaving cream and water and soda. "Just getting the call-up was surreal. I'd been working so hard to get back. To come here and get two homers, left and right, incredible...Indescribable. "

With Grandal, Volquez and first baseman Yonder Alonso, the Padres’ lineup included three of the four players they got in return for starting pitcher Mat Latos, who’ll make his first return to Petco Park with the Cincinnati Reds on Thursday. (The fourth, pitcher Brad Boxberger, is back in Triple-A after a stint with the Padres.)

“I hadn’t thought of it that way,” said general manager Josh Byrnes, engineer of the Dec. 17 trade. “Part of the trade was that we thought all four guys could contribute at the big-league level sooner rather than later. Obviously, Volquez was established and had some staying power. The three others are just getting started. It is kinda neat that they already share a lot.”